Saved to Serve

When World War II broke out in the Philippines, my father, Hilarion "Hil" Gusto, was just thirteen years old. The Japanese invasion had not yet reached their town of Maitum, Cotabato, in southern Mindanao, but lawlessness and violence already plagued the region. Local Muslims, aligned with the Japanese, targeted Catholic and Protestant neighbors, seeking to seize their lands. My dad's family and other Christian neighbors were unexpectedly rounded up and threatened with beheading by kampilan swords, but the Philippine Constabulary from the neighboring town of Kiamba intervened just in time.

Although my dad rarely spoke of the traumatic experience, relatives shared the story with me. The ordeal left him speechless for years and later led him to drinking and brawling. However, one evening, while he and his friends were on their way to serenade a young woman, they stumbled upon a chapel service where the pastor's message convicted him of sin. My dad repented and trusted in Jesus, transforming his life.

Following the war, my dad attended high school in Kiamba, where a Christian teacher mentored him in animal husbandry. He initially planned to study agricultural technology at the University of the Philippines Los Baños but he was providentially hindered, and instead enrolled at Far Eastern Bible Institute and Seminary (FEBIAS), founded by American G.I.'s. There, he trained to become a pastor and preacher.

God's provision was evident in my dad's life, rescuing him from danger, transforming him through the Gospel, and guiding him to FEBIAS for training and to meet his future wife, Esther Cozo Bacayo. I am grateful for my dad's legacy and his life, which pointed many to the life-giving Gospel.

Today would have been our dad's 97th birthday.